LONE WOLF PHOTO
2016 Wildfire Open to the World Winners Chad Masters and Kory Koontz.
THE WILDFIRE RANCH ARENA, IN SALADO, TEXAS, WILL HOST TWO 2016 NTR TOUR STOPS.
Team roping and Texas have gone hand-inhand for as long as cowboys have swung a rope, and this year, the National Team Roping Tour will make its mark in the Lone Star State with its own events at the World Famous Wildfire Ranch Arena—one in July and one in August.
Earlier this year, NTR Founder, Ty Yost, and team roping producer, Kevin Redstrom, started brainstorming an event together. They decided on a Fourth of July bash that will give lower number ropers a chance at 30 saddles, 20 buckles and great payouts during the week that’s come to be know as Cowboy Christmas.
“For this event, the ropings are starting at a 10 and going down, so we are really trying to focus on those lower-numbered ropers that aren’t going to go rodeo for the Fourth and give them a place to go,” Redstrom said.
“FOR THIS EVENT, THE ROPINGS ARE STARTING AT A 10 AND GOING DOWN, SO WE ARE REALLY TRYING TO FOCUS ON THOSE LOWER-NUMBERED ROPERS THAT AREN’T GOING TO GO RODEO FOR THE FOURTH AND GIVE THEM A PLACE TO GO.” - Kevin Redstrom
Redstrom produced team ropings at the Circle T Arena in Hamilton, Texas, for eight years, where he learned the area and made connections in the Texas team roping circuit. The knowledge gave him the perfect idea for the ideal location to host a Fourth of July team roping.
Located in Salado, Texas, the Wildfire Ranch Arena consists of a 150-foot by 300-foot rodeo arena, inside a 200,000 square foot building and offers the perfect setup for team ropers of all ages and skill levels.
“We looked around to a few other states, including New Mexico,” Redstrom said.
“Nothing else really seemed to fit our needs, so we started looking at Texas, and the Wildfire made the most sense to us. I lived in Texas for 10 years, so it’s a state where I know quite a few people.”
One invaluable connection Redstrom made was with Billy Pipes, the owner of the Wildfire Ranch Arena. The two met as professional acquaintances while Redstrom was working in the trailer business and developed a friendship from there. When considering arenas for the event, a quick call to Pipes confirmed that the Wildfire would be the perfect venue because of its ample parking, stalls, warm-up area and great hospitality.
Pipes built the arena in 1999 to give the high school rodeo team in the area a place to practice out of the weather. That year was particularly rainy, and nearly every event scheduled was rained out. Later that year, Pipes hosted the first of his famed Wildfire Open to the World events, and a few years later added the groundbreaking Wildfire Ladies Championship Roping.
The Wildfire Open to the World has become a favorite to team ropers everywhere and has grown tremendously as a result. With the changes in team roping expectations, the Wildfire Ranch has made a few adjustments of its own, including hiring full-time arena manager, Wick Thomas, in 2002, to ensure perfect ground and a premium facility.
Aside from the staffing addition, Pipes implemented some of fresh ideas to keep his Open to the World event fun and exciting. A few years ago, he shortened the score substantially, in order to show off the ropers’ skills, rather than horsepower. With his 14-year tenure at the ranch, Thomas has seen many Open to the World ropings and has enjoyed the change.
“Unless the ropers were pretty well mounted, we didn’t get to see how well they could handle a rope,” Thomas said. “We wanted to re-focus the event to the roper himself, and the shorter score was able to do that.”
In 2016 alone, the Wildfire Ranch prizes. This money includes the $64,000 Arena will payout over $1.5 million plus the Wildfire Ranch adds to the Open to the World Roping, the $25,000 added to the 2016 Ladies Championship, and the $12,000 they add to the Wildfire ProAm Sponsor roping. The Wildfire Ranch Arena also awards prizes at nearly all of their events, including saddles, buckles, spurs and hats.
With the upcoming NTR events to be held for the first time at the Wildfire Ranch Arena, the facility staff is excited to play host to such a family-friendly roping. “We are really looking forward to seeing what kind of crowd this event draws,” Thomas said. “We are expecting a little bit of a different pool than we typically draw to the facility, so it should really be a fun weekend.”
